Developing Your Web Presence Road Map

Last week I introduced the importance of a ‘web pulse’ and how search engines now index more than just your website. If you’ve been thinking about your web pulse and want to take it a step further, then the next logical step is to develop a Web Presence Road Map.

But it is one thing to set up a website, Twitter account, corporate LinkedIn page, YouTube channel, issue press releases, etc. It is quite another to execute a web presence road map with consistency, care and commitment.

Here are 3 implementation factors that will help you achieve success with your web presence road map and make deliberate improvements to your organic search rankings.

1. Commitment. You need commitment from your entire marketing team. Improvements in organic search rankings do not occur overnight. Take time to tie your organic search goals into your overall marketing and business strategy. SEO is an online marketing tactic just like email marketing and paid search. Try this:

– Make SEO a line item in the marketing budget.
– Set realistic goals such as, “we are going to spend 3 hours every week in Q4 examining our organic ranking and deciding what we need to do next to improve it”.
– Benchmark for important keywords and keyword phrases.

2. Content. You need a content strategy. Strong content is at the core of a successful SEO campaign. When you think about it, marketing is about using the best words to describe what it is you’re trying to sell. Search engines need content. Your prospects need content. Try this:

– Draw a circle in the middle of a page with your value proposition in that circle.
– One on side of the page list all the keyword phrases you think your prospects should be able to find you for.
– On the other side list all the marketing tactics (press releases, blog posts, email campaigns, tweets, events, etc.) you are going to use to tell the world about those keyword phrases and your value proposition.
– Create a quarterly schedule outlining when you are going to execute the tactics.
– Assign the work.

3. Tools. You need tools to measure results, to understand your pulse and to continually tweak the content. The right tools will help you gain insight into your web presence and they won’t break the bank.

If you are interested in a hands-on workshop on Developing Your Web Presence Road Map then join us on November 12th in Toronto, Ontario for a complimentary breakfast session. Sign up here.